State school testing offers little perspective

Results from the statewide wastewater testing at New Mexico schools have been published on the governor's website. But local school officials said the results announced Tuesday leave them with more questions than answers.

Testing for opioids and stimulants within schools' sewage water began in October, as part of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's recent public health order on drugs.

"While we applaud what are surely good intentions on the part of the state, and we are always ready to welcome and engage in initiatives that provide us new opportunities to address issues, this particular initiative has yet to endear itself to us ...," Clovis Municipal Schools Superintendent Renee Russ said.

The statewide results are from 106 schools. In the study, 63% of schools tested, including Portales and Floyd, showed traces of cocaine and its metabolite.

While the results may appear "alarming on the surface," Russ said the study doesn't provide enough information for the school districts.

"Unfortunately we are unable to provide much if any perspective on the results of statewide wastewater testing in schools. Nor do we have perspective on what if any benefit can be gained from the testing and/or results since, by the state's own admission, the variables and methodology of this testing initiative produce no actionable facts, and vast room for inconsistencies and error," Russ said.

The governor's website reports "(T)he wastewater samples collected for this effort capture everyone who used the restrooms on the day that the wastewater sample was collected. This includes the student population, as well as faculty, staff and visitors."

Russ said the study by the state also reveals there is no way to distinguish between illicit versus prescription drug use, much less who consumed the substance, when or how much.

Clovis High School results, for example, showed the presence of methamphetamine and opioids, substances found in pain medication. Russ said there exists extensive research on the potential of misleading positive results with these particular substances due to their closeness to or use in prescription medication.

"For example, medications for ADHD are known to produce positive results for methamphetamines and there exists a large body of literature on false positive methamphetamine results caused by consumption of energy drinks, most notably, Red Bull. It is easy to see how both of these scenarios could be readily found in a high school environment," Russ said.

Russ said the Clovis school district takes substance abuse prevention seriously and works diligently to educate students on use and potential consequences.

"Our district also engages in campaigns and partnerships with community groups that work to address substance abuse. Additionally our zero tolerance policy towards substances in the educational environment is supported through grade-level discipline matrices and we extend services to students and families through several programs aimed at addressing root issues," Russ said.

Portales Municipal Schools Superintendent Johnnie Cain agreed with Russ' assessment that there has to be more research for school districts to find the data helpful.

Cain said he had hoped to be notified from the state to hear the results and see if there would be any further guidance in the initiative. However, Cain said the first he heard of the results was on Wednesday through the governor's website.

"We were not given any information about the testing or what it really shows or tells us. We haven't even been given results or recommendations from the state. We don't know the concentrations they use to react on their tests," Cain said.

Floyd Municipal Schools Superintendent Todd Burleson said any push to make schools safer is welcomed.

"We welcome anything that gives us information that may help us, help our student population," Burleson said.

Burleson said the district currently has effective drug education programs, and has random drug-testing for all of the extra-curricular students several times a year.

"In addition to that, we bring in unannounced drug dogs on a regular basis, and will continue to do everything we can to provide a safe and effective school environment for our staff and students," Burleson said.

Statewide results show testing so far hasn't found any heroin in schools, but fentanyl or norfentanyl has been detected in at least 12 schools, though none in the Clovis-Portales area.

Samples were collected in December from local schools.

The testing program aims to reach every high school in the state.

"While these results show widespread use of illicit drugs in our high schools, they also provide us with a vital baseline to measure progress in addressing this issue," Environment Secretary James Kenney said in a statement. "As we continue to receive results from public schools around the state, we will better understand the geographic differences in substance misuse within communities and develop strategies accordingly."

The Santa Fe New Mexican contributed to this report.